473d Bombardment Squadron
The 473d Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last was assigned to the 334th Bombardment Group, stationed at Greenville Army Air Base, South Carolina. It was inactivated on 1 May 1944.
| 473d Bombardment Squadron | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the 473d Bombardment Squadron[1] | |
| Active | 1942-1944 |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch | United States Army Air Forces |
| Role | Bombardment |
History
The 473d Bombardment Squadron was activated in the summer of 1942 as one of the four original squadrons of the 334th Bombardment Group at Greenville AAB, South Carolina.[2][3] It operated as a North American B-25 Mitchell replacement training unit. Replacement training units were oversized units which trained aircrews prior to their deployment to combat theaters.[4] However, the Army Air Forces found that standard military units, based on relatively inflexible tables of organization were proving less well adapted to the training mission. Accordingly, a more functional system was adopted in which each base was organized into a separate numbered unit.[5] This resulted in the 471st, along with other units at Greenville, being disbanded in the spring of 1944[2] and being replaced by the 330th AAF Base Unit (Replacement Training Unit, Medium, Bombardment).
Lineage
- Constituted 473d Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 9 July 1942
- Activated on 16 July 1942
- Disbanded on 1 May 1944
Assignments
- 334th Bombardment Group, 16 July 1942 – 1 May 1944
Stations
- Greenville Army Air Base, South Carolina, 16 July 1942 – 1 May 1944.
Aircraft
- B-25 Mitchell, 1942–1944
References
Notes
- The emblems of the four squadrons of the 334th Bombardment Group, featuring "Bomby-the-Bear" were featured in Hubbard, Gerard. "Aircraft Insigia, Spirit of Youth," National Geographic Magazine Vol. LXXXIII, No. 6, June 1943, p. 714
- Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. p. 576. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.
- Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1983) [1961]. Air Force Combat Units of World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. p. 214. ISBN 0-912799-02-1. LCCN 61060979.
- Craven, Wesley F; Cate, James L, eds. (1955). "Introduction". The Army Air Forces in World War II. Vol. VI, Men & Planes. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. p. xxxvi. LCCN 48-3657.
- Craven & Cate, p. 7
Bibliography
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.
- Craven, Wesley F; Cate, James L, eds. (1955). The Army Air Forces in World War II. Vol. VI, Men & Planes. Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. LCCN 48-3657.
- Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1983) [1961]. Air Force Combat Units of World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-02-1. LCCN 61060979.
- Maurer, Maurer, ed. (1982) [1969]. Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II (PDF) (reprint ed.). Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-405-12194-6. LCCN 70605402. OCLC 72556.